


likeness.

by angekketet



Category: DRAMAtical Murder - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pre-Canon, Bittersweet, Christmas, Fluff and Angst, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-29
Updated: 2014-12-29
Packaged: 2018-03-04 05:32:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2954117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angekketet/pseuds/angekketet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Selling Rhyme information wasn't as easy as Noiz made it out to be. Truth was, he had a connection. </p><p>And he was meeting him for Christmas.</p><p>Written for the DMMD secret Santa event on Tumblr.</p>
            </blockquote>





	likeness.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SanaVenus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SanaVenus/gifts).



"Noiz."

Hearing his name on the lips of the most genuine person he had ever came in contact with, in person, in Rhyme, or even online, caused his heart to flutter in a way he never thought it could. After all, if his nerves failed to serve their original purpose, he doubted his heart would either.

He was wrong.

"Merry Christmas."

A frail, porcelain-skinned male stood before him. It was the first time he had ever seen him in person, for every other time had been on a Rhyme field or in a hologram hovering over his coil.

"How did you do it?"

It being Sei's momentary escape from Oval Tower. Noiz had hacked his own way into Platinum Jail. Not that it mattered anyway. He had as much cash as any of the residents and could blend in easily, honestly. It was all just a bit too flashy for him, and Rhyme wasn't big in the city, so odds are he couldn't make a living in Platinum Jail. Not like he could in the Old Residents District, anyway.

But he was still curious. He had escaped from his own tower once.

"This? I've been doing it for a while. Even Toue has a bit of a heart, and he sent a lot of the company home to be with their families. So I have some time. Still not much though, so come on. I want to see the lights."

To this, the blond gave no response, but instead went along and walked beside his cheerful companion. Noiz didn't know how to feel. He struggled with emotions anyway due to his condition. But, Christmas didn't even hold a meaning to him. He hadn't had a proper holiday since his family had deemed him a monster worthy of its own locked closet. He had no friends to share it with either. His team hardly counted, since they didn't know his identity. Even his Rhyme persona was masked, and he would rather it be that way.

After all, he needed no one. And no one needed him.

What had brought him to Sei was a mystery, even to him. He couldn't deny that, when he looked into those obsidian eyes, something _called_ him, something _lit up_ in him, and maybe, just maybe, he _felt_ something.

Truth be told, he had known Sei a while now. Since he went into business, actually.

Tracking Usui, knowing just where she was going to show up next, wasn't information that could just be _hacked_. Going into it though, Noiz had no idea. He had no idea that Usui was Toue's Allmate. He had no idea Toue had a son. In all reality, at the beginning he has no idea who Toue and his corporation even were, just that they had created the outlet for him to pave the way to understanding pain and other people, and he would do whatever it took to gain that understanding. Even if it meant participating in every game and knocking himself senseless.

That was the initial goal, anyway. That's where it all started.

Selling the information came only after he realized that, someone just as locked away as he had been, often used the Rhyme mediator as _his_ own outlet.

As if the raven-haired one knew, he spoke.

"Where you alarmed when I turned off Usui's voice modification and spoke to you myself the first time?"

Sei stepped a bit closer, and Noiz found he didn't mind. He had spoken to this person enough to know he was feeble, and maybe if he collapsed, the blond refused to be responsible.

It wasn't that he _cared_ or anything.

"Surprised, yeah. But not alarmed. You opened up my eyes to a lot of things."

Sei laughed then, a shy giggle, and something about it reminded Noiz of windchimes. The sound tugged at his heart. No one affected him the way. No one ever had.

"Just Rhyme things? Or..."

Sei was setting him up, and it made him feel a bit nervous, or maybe anxious. He shoved his hands in his pockets and scowled a bit. He hated losing at things. Especially things that involved human interaction.

"No. Not just Rhyme things."

"What else?"

"You know, Sei."

The petite male then stopped and frowned. Or something. Noiz was a bit confused at his expression, but it was sweet and sad. It reminded him a bit of a puppy. What was it...

Ah. Pouting.

This was pouting.

"Please tell me."

There was a flash behind those onyx pools. Whether or not he understood the look on his companion's face, he knew he /had/ to give a response. He had to open up. It was everything he hated and loved about Sei.

He had cracked the walls.

"That there was someone out there, who had been locked away for years. That had been abused. Someone that... Even though its different, from different circumstances, couldn't feel much either anymore. Someone else that had even..."

Talking about it was weird and something that Noiz didn't really want to do. It was difficult to find the words without the feeling behind them, and it was even harder to convey them when your body didn't set off any alarms to frustrate you or make you nervous. He grew weary of himself. He couldn't find something he didn't even have the tools to search for.

"Given up?"

The lightness of Sei's tone confused the blond even more. He was so chipper, so upbeat, so good-natured, that even Noiz could see it. He didn't understand just how he recognized those qualities or even cared about them. He didn't get why they had so much in common. He didn't understand, how after all of this, how coming to know him, Sei had resolved to die.

It wasn't fair. But _life_ wasn't fair. And Noiz knew it more than anyone.

After all, he had decided the same thing. When had he ever lived at all?

"Yeah. Given up."

Even through words like that, Sei kept smiling. He was happy. So very happy. Happy to be dying? Or happy to be out? Was it the holidays? Just...

To surely stop the wheels from turning in his head anymore, a pair of porcelain hands reached out to take one of his. Normally, he surely would have shrugged it off. The difference was that Sei had gained his trust. Probably more than that too, but he would hate to admit it. He had nothing to gain, but everything to lose.

 

 

They didn't speak for a while, but it was clear that Sei was slowly tiring out. His strides grew smaller and he moved slower, and Noiz could definitely make out his shortness of breath. The blond accommodated for this and was sure not to let the older of the two fall behind.

They finally stopped (per Sei's request) beneath an awning of a pavilion in the center of one of the many squares around Platinum Jail. It was clear that many parties were going on, technicolor strobes mingling with jingle bells and traditional Christmas lights. At the center of the square though, there was a gigantic tree. It was fiberoptic all the way through, illuminated in hues of red, green, and gold.

"Wow...! Noiz! Look at it!" Sei sat down on a bench as he took in the tree. He was apparently satisfied with the answer from earlier and Noiz was thankful he didn't press the matter any further.

The German joined him, apparently bored. He would rather drop dead than admit he was glad he wasn't spending the holiday alone though. Or that he had wanted to meet Sei for a long time.

"Yeah. Cool, I guess."

The petite male only chuckled, laughter again musical and sweet.

"Oh!" He suddenly exclaimed. "I got you a present. It isn't much, but I thought you might like it."

Noiz then looked up, his eyes widening and showing the most expression they had all night. He hadn't been given a present in years, but that wasn't it. He didn't have one to return, and--

Sei continued, undeterred by Noiz's expression. He removed a small, stuffed green rabbit from a satchel on his side. Seeing it instantly made Noiz turn away, the heat rising beneath the skin of his cheeks. He always felt it there, regardless of his broken nerves or whatever. Especially when bunnies were involved.

He loved bunnies.

"I didn't know. I don't have--"

"Yeah, I know. But that's alright. Because the yakuza would see and wonder where I had gotten another gift and know I had escaped again. _This_ was your gift to me, Noiz, and it's perfect," he chimed.

"...What was?"

"Tonight, silly. This time out. Sharing Christmas with a friend. With you."

Friend? He considered them friends.

What did Noiz consider Sei? A business partner? If it wasn't for Sei, he wouldn't have the information he sold. But Sei refused to accept any profit. It had always been that way. They collaborated. Usui appeared everywhere that Sei hadn't seen vicariously through her, and Noiz tracked it for him. He didn't have to do this, but he did anyway.

Did he finally have a friend?

Maybe. Sei considered his freedom a notable present. It didn't cost Noiz a single penny, but it was a gift he had given, and a perfect one at that. Noiz was met with another tug at his heart then, stronger this time.

He squeezed the bunny tighter.

"I knew you liked rabbits, and green was your favorite color. I have a lot of plushies, so I thought maybe you'd give it a good home."

"I will."

Looking up, honestly to avoid the situation, a piece of ribbon caught his eye. At first glance he thought it was part of the tree, but then realized that it was actually tied to the roof of the awning. A sprig of something was connected to it, with little leaves, and berries. He vaguely recognized it as--

"Mistletoe."

Sei had been looking at the tree once more, pondering Christmas and his companion. But his ears pricked at a word like that coming from Noiz's mouth. Mistletoe?

Turning back to address the blond, he was answered by a pair of lips on his own. Obsidian eyes wide in shock, he felt his pale cheeks quickly flush over an endearing shade of pink as his eyes slid closed. Noiz was kissing him, and it wasn't long before he felt a tongue slide across his lips.

He didn't hesitate. He parted them.

Truth be told, this wasn't part of the plan tonight. Sei only wanted to meet Noiz, spend Christmas out and about like everyone else, and overall enjoy himself. It was all on the bucket list, along with a kiss like this. Sei had never been kissed so deeply, so stumbling under mistletoe with Noiz was a complete accident. Checking that one off was an even bigger accident. But the last thing he would do was complain about it.

With curiosity, he pressed his tongue against the teen's, feeling the bar through it and sucking gently. He was momentarily embarrassed by how forward this boy was, but then he remembered vaguely how he said his tongue was the only area on his body that didn't lack sensation. So really, this was the first time they had truly connected.

And that touched Sei.

Far too soon, he was forced to pull away. Breathing was difficult and he knew by the dull ache in his chest that he had better stop before he suffocated himself. Death by kiss didn't seem so bad, though. Even so, he wasn't quite ready yet. He still needed to meet Aoba.

As his eyes finally opened to meet Noiz's, he smiled kindly. Those pools of green had lacked light for as long as Sei had known him. But, now they reflected the tree behind them, and Sei had to appreciate the irony a bit. It was sad, how Noiz was. But it was sad how he was too.

However, he could be happy because Noiz would soon find what he needed. Even if Sei somehow was able to escape his plush prison, he was far too damaged to enjoy life fully. It was too late for him. In a way, that made him appreciate the evening all that much more.

Maybe, you can only appreciate life once you realize you're dying.

With a thoughtful sigh, he turned away. "Will you walk me home, Noiz? I'm afraid I'm getting a bit tired. I'm sorry."

The German looked away, this time up at the tree. For once in a very long time, he had a Christmas that he deemed special and worth remembering. He tucked the bunny in his pocket, making a mental note to keep it taken care of. It was important.

Sei was important.

Maybe even he was important.

"Yeah, I'll walk you home. It's alright. Don't apologize."

With that, he stood and offered his hand to Sei. He took it with a gloved and dainty, and something about that made the corners of Noiz's lips upturn.

"Is that a smile I see?"

"Probably not," he smirked, the smile now apparent.

"Brat," Sei teased, drooping his arm over Noiz's shoulder. The young German bent down to support him. It's not like the weight could hurt him or anything.

While walking home, they didn't talk about the night or Christmas, or the past or present, or even families or bunnies. They talked about the same things they did through screens. It didn't bother either of them any, because they both knew how important the night had been for both of them. After all, they had a lot in common.

"Sei, will you still talk to me when you're home?"

"Of course!"

"Rhyme with me then."

"You're lucky my tallies don't count, or you would have to throw away that undefeated title of yours."

"True. I'd do it though."

And with that, Noiz said goodbye to the first person to consider him a friend, accept him, and understand him completely. He hoped it wasn't the end though. He hoped, with every fiber of his being, that it want the end. Hope was something he had lacked for a long damn time, so he savored it alongside everything else that had happened that night.

As he stepped outside of Platinum Jail, crossing back into the Old Residents District, a familiar, dizzying feeling took him. He could have stopped the drive-by, but he didn't. Mostly out or confusion, really. The Rhyme field opening was a surprise, he normally had these things calculated, but this was different. The aura was different. He was the same though, still in his rabbit head mask and his doctor's outfit.

The field was custom and vaguely familiar. As he watched, realization taking him, a familiar insignia opened up and Usui appeared. She had a smile on her porcelain face, and the image of Sei instantly blinked through his mind again.

"Merry Christmas. Again. I just wanted to see you made it home safely."

Noiz chuckled lightly, distorted through the head of his Rhyme persona. He then slipped it off, holding it in his arms as he looked up to the vision before him.

"Thank you, princess."

In a swift movement he slipped it back on, reached down to the coat of pocket, and tossed the usagimodoki into the air. As they popped open into their Rhyme form, he smiled sincerely under that mask. It wouldn't matter, Sei could see right through him.

" **Fight. Sei.** "

**Author's Note:**

> I really love Noiz getting dokis a lot. 
> 
> I feel like he would relate and care for Sei a lot, and yet be completely understanding of his goals. 
> 
> It is safe to imagine this as the Christmas before DMMD takes place. Things unfold soon after.


End file.
